My coworker was high and got away with it

[Volley88]

Happy 4/20 I guess?

This particular RN (I'll name him Jon) has been working for our unit for two years. We work in a MedSurg unit at a county hospital. Apparently, we DONT do drug tests at all.

Our morning was going fine, we both took report in the same area and had our breaks at the same time. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary (aside from saying "I'm sleepy/tired," but we all say it). Jon did one discharge and completed one admit. He helped me start an IV for one of my patients and cosigned my insulin.

It wasn't until lunch I noticed Jon's phone Snapchat(?) of him consuming edibles. I also saw Jon's text messages saying "he was still high this morning."

I immediately went to the charge nurse and reported my discovery. Our charge nurse was in disbelief and found it difficult to believe. We confronted Jon and he denied everything.

Our charge nurse discreetly followed up on his patients, and they reported nothing but excellent nursing care. We checked his charting and everything was within policy. We also checked all his pyxis pulls and there were no discrepancies. Lastly, we privately spoke to an MD that Jon was speaking to in the morning who also reported that his behavior was completely normal.

I apologized to Jon as there were no evidence of him being high towards the end of the shift. As we were leaving the hospital, one of Jon's friends (from another unit), came up to him and ask him about his 4/20. I saw Jon winked and nodded. I got upset and just left.

The next day, I reported it to the charge. She said to leave it alone since there wasn't any proof and no patients were harmed. I am not sure what else to do at this point.

[~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN]

This is different, usually the pack mentality the forms on internet forums has nurses vehemently defending pt safety, with the insistence that all potential pt safety issues are to be reported for investigation.

I think the difference here is there were no concerns for patient safety as the nurse had not exhibited any unsafe behaviors. Quiet the opposite actually. The "concern for safety" came from what could have been joking images on social media and laughing and winking with a co-worker. Being that we tend to work hard for our careers and so much can be lost with false allegations, I think that is why the pack this time is defending the nurse.

The OP did not list anything the nurse himself did in the present that was worrisome or made one believe patient safety was at risk.

[SmilingBluEyes]

This is different, usually the pack mentality the forms on internet forums has nurses vehemently defending pt safety, with the insistence that all potential pt safety issues are to be reported for investigation.

There is no pack mentality. Just a majority of people who read the post and realized that patient care and safety were never compromised and that the OP stepped way over the line.

Simple as that.

[WKShadowNP, DNP, APRN]

And what about the alleged user's safety?

This has gone far enough.

:deadhorse:

[MunoRN, RN]

This is different, usually the pack mentality the forms on internet forums has nurses vehemently defending pt safety, with the insistence that all potential pt safety issues are to be reported for investigation.

The OP, by her own description, spent a good portion of her shift looking for evidence that "Jon" was impaired and found none. Distraction is a major patient safety issue, and this nurse was clearly distracted for a good portion of her shift with trying to build a case against her coworker, even to the point that "Jon" had to help pick up her slack. So in finding fault with focusing on a coworker instead of her patients is defending patient safety.

[blondy2061h, MSN, RN]

There is no pack mentality. Just a majority of people who read the post and realized that patient care and safety were never compromised and that the OP stepped way over the line.

Simple as that.

The time that patient care was probably compromised was when OP was out playing Sherlock Holmes while Jon was taking care of her patients plus his.

[~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN]

The time that patient care was probably compromised was when OP was out playing Sherlock Holmes while Jon was taking care of her patients plus his.

*snort* This literally just made me laugh out loud. The out playing Sherlock Holmes! Perfect way to end my night! Much appreciated!

[YassQueen]

What if he was still high from the incredible time he had with a new dating partner?

[Irish_Mist, BSN, RN]

Why are you looking at his phone? I'd be livid if my co-worker was doing that.

You said yourself that everything was clear in his patient care and charting. What exactly do you want from this? Do you have a personal issue with "Jon" or something? Sure seems like it since you seem so eager for this to be bigger than what it actually is.

Here is my suggestion: Quit looking at your co-worker's phones, do your dam* job, and only escalate things worth being escalated. If I were your co-worker, I'd stay away from you. It sounds like you like to create drama and trouble.

[suzystrempke]

Again, I say, everyone in health care should be required to have continuing education, at least every 1-3 years, on addiction and diversion of medications. So many misjudgments and much misinformation among our profession is dangerous. To be able to recognize when a coworker may be in trouble, and possibly save a life, critical. This OP was not interested in anyone's wellbeing. She was being a busybody.

I completely agree with this. I have a sibling that suffers with a substance use disorder and there is A LOT of misinformation/stigma out there even within the healthcare community.

The NCSBN offers a FREE online cours on Substance Use Disorders in Nursing. It's 4 contact hours and I thought it was REALLy good. It's provides current research on addiction, what signs may be present if a nurse is using on the job, the proper way to report concerns, and the resources various state boards provide to help any nurse with this brain disease. I highly recommend ALL nurses take advantage of these free contact hours and go through this course.

Here's the link: Understanding Substance Use Disorder in Nursing | NCSBN

Suzy

[lucymcgillicuddy78]

WOW! I cannot believe how all of you are responding to this. I'm not even in nursing school yet and I believe she did the right thing. I would think that as a nurse, patient care and safety is the number one priority. If I had suspicion that someone on my shift was under the influence of drugs or alcohol, you better believe I will say something. They may be able to handle it one day but what about that one day they don't and something horrible happens? They give the wrong medication to a patient or the wrong dose, what if the patient dies under their watch? I for sure don't want to say to myself at that point, "I should have said something"

If management did not want to pursue an investigation on "jon" at that time, then anything that happens from that point would be on them. Not me, I did my part. I would not continue to try and find out more on his "extracurricular activities" and just go about my shift.

I get that whatever you do outside of work is your business but lets NOT bring it to

work too.

[Rocknurse, MSN, APRN, NP]

WOW! I cannot believe how all of you are responding to this. I'm not even in nursing school yet and I believe she did the right thing. I would think that as a nurse, patient care and safety is the number one priority. If I had suspicion that someone on my shift was under the influence of drugs or alcohol, you better believe I will say something. They may be able to handle it one day but what about that one day they don't and something horrible happens? They give the wrong medication to a patient or the wrong dose, what if the patient dies under their watch? I for sure don't want to say to myself at that point, "I should have said something"

If management did not want to pursue an investigation on "jon" at that time, then anything that happens from that point would be on them. Not me, I did my part. I would not continue to try and find out more on his "extracurricular activities" and just go about my shift.

I get that whatever you do outside of work is your business but lets NOT bring it to

work too.

As you're not even in nursing school yet it's painfully apparent that you have no idea what the implications of such an unfounded accusation are. This can utterly destroy someone's career, cause them to lose their license and livelihood, and lead to years of expense. Without solid proof or a genuine concern for patient safety, you do NOT make accusations like this...not unless they're falling down drunk and slurring their words. And even then you may say something like "I don't think Jon is feeling very well. Can we get some help?". You don't have to bring up drugs or alcohol at all...that's your manager's call. You will learn once you're a nurse how tightly knit the nursing community is in a particular area. You make yourself a name like that, as a trouble maker, and you'll never work again...because bad news travels fast. Keep your mouth closed and your concentration on your patient. Mind. Your. Own. Business.

[lucymcgillicuddy78]

That's horrible. So pretty much everyone covers for each other when they are not in the right state of mind? Even though "Jon" seemed fine that day, what about the day he isn't? Then what?

Don't come to work high on any substance period! Then you won't have to worry about losing your job/career.

Do that on your own time, not the patients time.